LONDON, May 10 (ITAR-TASS) - The European Union on Monday decided to introduce an embargo on arms supplies to Syria, the British satellite channel Sky News reported.

The EU imposed an arms embargo Monday on Syria, where the government is conducting a violent and sometimes lethal crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, according to the Associated Press. The EU is banning the shipment to Libya of "arms and equipment that could be used for internal repression," an EU statement said late Monday. The EU also is prohibiting 13 Syrian "officials and associates of the Syrian regime" from travelling anywhere in the 27-nation union, and is freezing their assets, the statement said. The 13 have been identified as being responsible for the violent repression against the civilian population, it said.

An EU official said late last week that Syrian President Bashar Assad would not be among those sanctioned. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in exchange for disclosing confidential information. The EU will publish the names of those sanctioned in its official journal Tuesday, AP reported.